Voice messaging has become an integral part of businesses' and individuals' daily lives. Indeed, many consumers have access to a multitude of voice messaging systems. For example, a consumer may have voice messaging provided by their employer, their own personal mobile operator, their home landline, etc. These voice messaging systems often provide different features and different types of overall experiences for the user. For example, some voice messaging systems now provide a combination of communications, i.e., unified communications, to the user, such as voice mails and electronic mail (e-mail). Some systems provide text transcripts of voice mail messages stored in the voice messaging system. The disparate features offered by the various voice messaging systems requires a user to develop a familiarity and knowledge of each such system to provide efficiency in the use of such systems. However, even such familiarity and knowledge does not diminish the need for users to spend time checking a variety of sources when they desire to stay up-to-date with their voice messages. Checking a multitude of sources is time-consuming and also leaves room for error where the user may forget to check a particular source.
Further, having a multitude of disparate voice messaging services is inefficient for a user in the registration and configuration process because these processes require manual manipulation. To register with a voice messaging service, the user provides identification information and any other information required by the particular voice messaging service. The user then is required to manually provide the number(s) to which unanswered, busy, or unavailable calls should be forwarded. Different phone numbers for forwarding may be required for each type of call. For example, standard Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) networks require users to forward “busy” calls by dialing *67*[Phone Number]#, *61*[Phone Number]# for “unanswered” calls, and *62*[Phone Number]# for calls when the phone is “unavailable,” or not in reach of the carrier network. Not only does such manual forwarding consume user time and require knowledge of such requirements on the part of the user, but the problem is exacerbated given that not all mobile operators follow the same standards for such manual forwarding. For example, a single phone number for forwarding may be used by some mobile operators. The problem is further exacerbated when access numbers for retrieving such messages change based on changes made at the voice messaging service or if the user changes physical locations and desires to connect to a voice messaging service that does not require a long-distance phone call, for example. The ability of users to respond to such changes and manually register and forward their calls thus becomes increasingly difficult to accomplish in a timely manner and is subject to rampant errors.
Although specific problems have been addressed in this Background, this disclosure is not intended in any way to be limited to solving those specific problems.